PDX Unionists Back from Venezuela and Colombia

Nine PCASC delegates from seven different Portland area unions just returned from Venezuela and Colombia. On Dec. 5th the delegates will present their findings and experiences. Does Hugo Chavez promote progressive social change and independent labor unions, or is the labor movement just an arm of the government? Is the United States government implicated in the brutal killing of labor leaders in Colombia or is it trying to use its influence to protect human rights?

WORKERS' RIGHTS, REVOLUTION, U.S INTERVENTION:
A Report Back from the NW Labor Delegation to Venezuela and Colombia

Nine PCASC delegates from seven different Portland area unions just
returned from Venezuela and Colombia. On Dec. 5th the delegates will
present their findings and experiences.

Does Hugo Chavez promote progressive social change and independent
labor unions, or is the labor movement just an arm of the government?

Does the AFL-CIO intervene in Venezuela's democracy?

Is the United States government implicated in the brutal killing of
labor leaders in Colombia or is it trying to use its influence to
protect human rights?

What role did the CIA play in the 2002 Venezuelan coup?

How can the U.S. labor movement and progressive activists be in
solidarity with the Venezuelan and Colombian labor movements?

What can we in the U.S. labor movement learn from the Venezuelan and
Colombian models?

The delegation included leadership and members of 7 unions, including
the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Locals 4 and 8,
the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME) Local 88, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
Local 503, the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW),
the United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 1065 and the Oregon
Education Association (OEA).

Come see the video made by the delegates, and join a discussion of the
delegations' findings.